Studies are also done on the situation of poor women giving birth in high- as well as low-income countries. Another focus is how activities and work affect people with respect to health, care, and environment, especially if the place of work is within a landsting (‘county council’) or municipality, where most of the employees are women. Long-term pain, primarily affecting women, the need for activity-related rehabilitation, the experience of chronic heart failure by women, as well as the activities and lifestyles of youths with mild developmental disorders, are other research areas.

The rights, empowerment and welfare of children and adolescents are core features of the research that recently received a boost by the employment of a new professor of social work. Gender perspectives and relationships within families, vis-à-vis professionals, or between people of the same age are important areas of study. Comparative studies, with an international perspective, on social workers’ evaluation of children in abusive situations have also been carried out.

Research dealing with the situation of unaccompanied immigrant children, and of adolescents placed in foster homes, is of particular regional importance. The situations of youths with and without disabilities are subject to comparative studies focusing on self-appraised mental health, alcohol and drug habits, as well as subjection to mobbing, harassment, and sexual assaults.

Research programmes

Within the research environment Women and Children’s Health, following research programmes can be found:

• Reproductive and prenatal care
• Children’s and adolescents’ empowerment
• Long-term pain and rehabilitation

These programmes comprise a number of projects within the research environment and involve readers, senior lecturers, and doctoral students and often involve cooperation with other seats of learning and/or society at large.